IN HUMAN Synonyms: 209 Similar and Opposite Words

inhuman

adjective

(ˌ)in-ˈhyü-mən

Definition of inhuman

as in oppressive

difficult to endure kept the prisoners in criminally inhuman conditions

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in ruthless

having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings an inhuman indifference to the sufferings of other human beings

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in brutal

having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others a classic sociological study showing just how inhuman an individual can become when given absolute power over another

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of inhuman The arrangement is too polished and represents something which is inhuman. — Charlie Harding, Vulture, 15 May 2026 To drag a man in fetters into the grand illuminated temple of liberty, and call upon him to join you in joyous anthems, were inhuman mockery and sacrilegious irony. — Jeremy Mennis, The Conversation, 1 May 2026 The power of his work resides not in ideological argument or moral screed but in the observation of characters struggling to maintain their humanity in an inhuman system. — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2026 Here, the realism performs the function of grounding the reader solidly within a world that is, at first sight, remarkably grotesque, alien, even inhuman, as removed from us as possible. — Literary Hub, 16 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for inhuman

Recent Examples of Synonyms for inhuman

Adjective

In addition to facing each other, the Norway and England players will also have to battle oppressive heat and humidity on Saturday.

— Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 11 July 2026
Rents in Rhode Island are particularly oppressive, with the average for a three-bedroom home costing nearly 30% of median income.

— Scott Cohn, CNBC, 10 July 2026

Definition of oppressive

Adjective

Neill was magnetic as the ruthless CI Major Chester Campbell in Peaky Blinders—an antagonist and romantic rival of Cillian Murphy’s Tommy Shelby.

— ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 15 July 2026
Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé and Michael Olise, who has a tournament-high five assists, were also kept quiet by the ruthless Spaniards.

— Mark Hodge, NBC news, 15 July 2026

Definition of ruthless

Adjective

And such attacks are not merely tactics of war, but the brutal intersection of the logic of war and the logic of climate vulnerability.

— Sarah Yerkes, Time, 10 July 2026
That film culminated in the brutal defeat of House Atreides by rival House Harkonnen, with Paul and his mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), fleeing to the desert and taking refuge among the Fremen.

— Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 9 July 2026

Definition of brutal

Adjective

The poem that precedes it, the Iliad, is a cruel and beautiful work, the ultimate story of war; the Odyssey has its warlike passages, but its central energies seem almost commonplace beside the merciless fury of Achilles.

— David Denby, New Yorker, 21 June 2026
Humility is the posture; the standard is merciless.

— Luis E. Romero, Forbes.com, 19 June 2026

Definition of merciless

Adjective

The heat has become so unbearable in Japan that weather officials in April announced a new term for days when maximum temperatures exceed 104 degrees — kokushobi, meaning harsh or cruel heat, according to the Japan Times.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2026
For thousands of Venezuelans, however, the lack of definitive answers has become one of the tragedy’s cruelest consequences.

— Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 3 July 2026

Definition of cruel

Adjective

White, when give the chance, has displayed a diverse offensive game, a defensive bent and an ability to make tough shots.

— Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 17 July 2026
The stakes for new avatar don’t feel quite as high—the specific circumstances around the former was a perfect storm that'll be tough to duplicate—but the music isn’t any less potent for it.

— Lawrence Burney, Pitchfork, 16 July 2026

Definition of tough

Adjective

Oscar Wilde, for example, reposes beneath a hulking deity whose iconoclastic castration, back in 1961, did little to restrain pilgrims seeking to smear red lips across his stony physique.

— Emily Cox, ARTnews.com, 22 May 2026
Instead of looking like a sleek urban loft, the room can quickly start to feel cold, stony, and impersonal.

— Natasha Bazika, Martha Stewart, 9 May 2026